This invention relates generally to auxiliary sighting aids for hand-held firearms, namely, pistols; more specifically, it relates to an apparatus that is useful in attaching an auxiliary sighting aid (such as a flashlight, laser, night-vision device or telescope) to the frame of a pistol without removing or interfering with the original or factory-installed "iron" sights.
It is well known to add auxiliary sighting aids to pistols and other hand-held firearms, for the purpose of improving the ability of a shooter to hit the target that he or she is aiming at. Such auxiliary sighting aids include telescopes and night-vision devices that gather whatever ambient light is available in the field of view and sometimes enhance the image that is presented to a user. Such aids also include lasers or flashlights that project light from some source adjacent the firearm in a direction parallel to the firearm's barrel. Whenever possible, these auxiliary sighting aids are added to firearms without removing or otherwise obstructing the line of sight that is established by the so-called iron sights that are routinely installed at a factory. Therefore, when evaluating any new mounting scheme for auxiliary sights, it is reasonable to inquire whether the original factory sights are left intact and capable of being used as an alternative to any new sighting aid. A prudent designer will anticipate this inquiry and attempt to find some structural part of a firearm to serve as a structural base to which an auxiliary mount can be affixed without disabling the original sights.
Certain semi-automatic pistols are characterized by the presence of a relatively large slide that moves on the exterior part of the pistol. One very common example of such pistols is the Colt Model 1911 .45 caliber semi-automatic pistol. The fact that the external slide of such a pistol moves longitudinally every time the pistol is fired means that a stable, non-moving base is not present on the upper part of the pistol, as is common with revolvers and some other semi-automatic pistols. The absence of a static, upper base to which a scope mount could be attached was overcome at least as early as 1982 when Travis R. Strahan, a gunsmith in Ringgold, Ga. disclosed a technique for adding a scope-type mount to a semi-automatic pistol having a movable slide. The Strahan teachings are now disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,418,487 entitled "Mounting Bracket for Gun Sight." A notable feature of the Strahan construction is its use of a "common fastener" that is used to hold the sight mount on the pistol and also serve as a functional part of the pistol. In the Strahan disclosure, the original slide stop pin is removed and replaced with a slightly longer pin. The extra length of the new pin serves to hold the mount on the pistol, while the middle part of the pin cooperates with other parts to permit normal operation of the pistol.
The identical principle of using a modified slide stop pin in a dual capacity has been disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,777,754 to Reynolds, Jr. entitled "Light Beam Assisted Aiming of Firearms." The most significant difference between the earlier Strahan design and the later Reynolds disclosure is that Strahan's auxiliary sighting aid is located above the pistol's barrel while Reynolds' sighting aid is located below the pistol's barrel; otherwise, the concepts are essentially the same. Of course, Reynolds does introduce the concept of meticulously shaping the contour of a battery housing (below the barrel) to the contour of a firearm; but it remains to be seen whether this concept will find acceptance among those in the firearms industry or whether it will be ignored as being too expensive and of questionable merit.
While both Strahan and Reynolds teach techniques for mounting auxiliary sighting aids on a pistol, they do so in a manner that involves either a great deal of expense in labor or engineering, or that involves a substantial waste of both metal and manufacturing energy. That is, mounts in accordance with the Strahan design were originally manufactured by starting with a solid block of metal and using milling machines and the like to cut away the interior of the block, leaving only an exterior framework having the configuration shown in FIG. 2 of the Strahan patent. As most persons would likely agree, making a generally hollow frame out of a massive block of steel or aluminum is not only labor intensive, but it is also wasteful of both energy and material. As a result, sight mounts of the Strahan design were relatively expensive to produce, even though they accomplished the purpose for which they were designed.
Mounting devices in accordance with the Reynolds design could be prepared either by a substantial quantity of machining (as with Strahan) or with investment castings, both of which would contribute to a product that is probably more expensive to build than might be desired. It is an object of this invention, therefore, to provide a mounting apparatus having some of the beneficial characteristics of Strahan and Reynolds but eliminating much of the wastefulness and/or expense of producing such a mounting apparatus. In a sense, then, the present invention may be thought of as an improvement over both the Strahan and Reynolds designs, and a contribution to the field of manufacturing engineering as it relates to scope mounts and the like.
Accordingly, it is an object of this invention to provide a mounting apparatus for attachment to pistols which reduces the quantity of metal that must be removed or wasted in manufacturing such an apparatus.
One more object is to provide a mounting apparatus that can be manufactured at reduced costs in comparison with earlier designs.
Another object is to provide a mounting apparatus for use on semi-automatic pistols having external slides in which elevation adjustments for the apparatus with respect to the pistol's frame may be easily accomplished.
Still another object is to provide a mounting apparatus that can be manufactured and installed with a lower amount of attention to tolerances, because of the many compensating adjustments that can be accomplished by the person who is mounting an apparatus on a pistol.
These and other objects will be more fully appreciated by a careful reading of this specification and the claims appended thereto, and reference to the several figures of the drawing provided herewith.